Meaning trap
make up
form or be part of a whole
To combine together to create something, or to be a part of something larger.
Don't mix these meanings
Same phrase, different job.
To combine together to create something, or to be a part of something larger.
Another meaning of 'make up' is 'invent (a story, excuse, etc.)'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.
Hear it in context
Notice where the phrase sounds natural.
- Women make up more than half of the company's staff.study
- International students make up a significant part of the university population.IELTS speaking
Fix the pattern
Pattern: make up something; be made up of something
WrongStudents make up of 60% of the audience.
RightStudents make up 60% of the audience.
'Make up' takes the proportion directly — no 'of' after 'make up'.
Patternmake up something; be made up of something
Use it right
Choose the version that sounds natural in speech.
'Make up' is the natural verb for forming a proportion of a whole; 'constitute approximately' is formal/statistical.
Build natural chunks
Words that usually travel with it.
make up + proportionhalf ofthe majoritya large part of10% of
Don't confuse it
This sense is about the parts of something, not inventing or relationships.
Related
- make up (invent (a story, excuse, etc.)) — Another meaning of 'make up' is 'invent (a story, excuse, etc.)'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.